The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1887-10-08
Special Contributors.
THE TRUE GROUNDS OF MISSIONS
BY REV. S. CRANE, d. d.
(Galesburg, ILL.,

Much has been said and written con-
cerning Christian missions of late.
Certain sentiments, it has been urged
support missions, while certain other
sentiments "cut the nerve of missions.
1t may be helpful to offer a word on
the true grounds of missions. What
are the true grounds of missions Why
is Christianity missionary religion ?
There are at least two of these grounds.
Two convictions lie at the base of
Christian missions, without which we
see not how they can be justified or
supported.
The first is that Christianity is the
absolute religion; that Christ teaches
the absolute truth concerning God,
duty and destiny; and that harmony
with God, moral perfection and peace
in one word salvation, depends upon
our coming to knowledge of this
truth and obeying it. This conviction
is fundamental to Christian missions.
Indeed, it is fundamental to all mis-
sions.. No religion was ever mission
ary religion unless it claimed to be the
absolute truth of God. Mohamme dan
ism and Buddhism claim this just as
much as Christianity. Each claims to
be the absolute truth of God, and hence
seeks to convert men to its faith. Christ
ian missions, therefore, have always
rested upon this ground. The mission
ary movements of the Christian church
have all been based on the conviction
that Christ is the truth of God, with
out whom there is no salvation. The
founders of the American Board be-
lieved this very strongly, as have the
promoters of all other missionary enter
prises in the Christian church from the
earliest days until now.
Indeed, it is easy to see that any
thing short of this conviction could not
justify or sustain missions. Allow that
Christianity is not the absolute truth,
but only one of many religions, any one
of which is sufficient for salvation, and
all incentive to missionary effort ceases.
Or allow that it is better than some
other religions, and yet not the abso-
lute truth,-that we are to look for
some future revelation for the real way
of God,-and the "nerve of missions
is assuredly "cut." We cannot be
moved to carry the gospel to our fellow
men, that after all we are not sure is
the gospel. The fundamental postulate
of missions must ever be that Christ
ianity is the absolute truth of God;
that we are complete only in Christ.
The second ground of missions is
the conviction that man has work to
do in securing his own, and the worlds
salvation. 1t must be seen that saliva
tion, or the religion that secures saliva
tion, is a moral attainment, obtained
in a moral way; that faith in Christ is
rational conviction of his truth, Sc
cured by the ''hearing of the word"
which necessitates the preaching of
that word. This is the second convic-
ton that is necessary to sustain mis-
sions, the conviction that man must
work with God in securing both his
own and the worlds salvation. Any
church to be a real live missionary
church must not only believe that
Christ is the only way of the worlds
salvation, but also that it has work to
do in inducing the world to walk in
that way.
In proportion, therefore, as Christ
ianity is so interpreted as to destroy
this conviction, just in that proportion
is the missionary spirit destroyed. In
high Calvinism there is no missionary
enterprise. High Calvinism saved man
by arbitrary decree and so mans work
was of no account; hence there was
nothing to inspire him to missionary
effort. Modern missions came into be-
ing when Calvinism began to be mcdi.
fed, and tendency toward admitting
some freedom of the will and some
worth to human effort, began to ap-
pear, and as this tendency has increased,
so has the missionary spirit increased.
Here, then, we have the two great
grounds of missions, that Christianity
is the absolute religion, and that man
has work to do in securing his own
and the worlds salvation.
Our church will become missionary
church, just in proportion as it holds